


Grass Rings and Angel Wings

by Tealightful



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Angst, Established Relationship, Fluff, Happy Ending, Homophobia, Homophobic Language, Implied Sexual Content, Kid Fic, M/M, Magic Revealed, Teen Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-02
Updated: 2017-12-31
Packaged: 2019-01-28 16:01:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply, Underage
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,041
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12610304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tealightful/pseuds/Tealightful
Summary: A grass ring alone isn't very valuable. There is grass everywhere and all you have to do to make one is tie up a blade. However, if a promise is made when you tie it, then it becomes priceless.Angels aren't real, as far as Merlin is aware. But he has always had an angel on his shoulder since before he can remember. But the prince of Camelot doesn't just protect his friends, he is constantly under attack, unbeknownst to him, of course. So he too has an angel, he just doesn't quite know it, yet.***The underage is consensual, however the parties participating are fifteen and seventeen. Take that however you like.





	1. Grass Rings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Merlin discovers two things as a child. One is a clearing not but a half hour from Camelot full of flowers and sunshine. The other is much the more spectacular, Prince Arthur Pendragon.

"We're almost there, it's just this way!" 

Arthur dashes past the trees, following just behind Merlin, who is running surprisingly fast for someone his size.

"Come on, Merlin. You know my dad doesn't like me playing in the forest. There are bandits, and hunters, and all sorts of scary things back here." 

Merlin ignores him, possibly because he can't hear him, but more likely because he knows Arthur bends the rules all the time for him. Plus, they are so far from the kingdom that all of the trees block the gates and the tunnel they used to get out unnoticed.

Merlin has clearly been here before, many times Arthur believes with how sure he seems of the direction to go. He doesn't even stop to look around at his surroundings to see if he is going the right way. He has ran all the way here and Arthur is getting a bad side cramp, despite being the future king and therefore training almost everyday. For someone of his age, the training is mostly about getting boys into shape and building a strong heart, both literally and figuratively. Knights have to be able to handle long periods of combat with little rest, and see their friends dead beside them and continue fighting. Arthur is no exception to this, and is in good shape, but even he is getting tired from all of this running, but Merlin continues as if taking a stroll around the market.

"Where are you taking me?" Arthur shouts ahead, trying and failing not to wheeze.

"It's a surprise, I told you that already!" Merlin turns his head.

"As the future king I demand to know where we are going!" Arthur straightens his back to make himself taller, although he ends up looking even more like a small boy. This isn't the first time he uses the "future king" card to get what he wants, and it won't be the last. But both boys know that Merlin will just ignore him and pretend like he can't hear, as he has done several times before.

After some time, they approach a clearing full of flowers and grass. The sun shines on them brightly, and Arthur raises his hand to block some of its rays. The ground is soft and uniform, almost like walking on pillows, unlike the patchy, mossy dirt in the forest. Merlin looks around over the tops of the trees and stares at the castle. Arthur looks with him.

"Why are we here, Merlin?" Arthur asks tiredly

"Because all of the people weren't leaving us alone. I wanted you to be happy today, it is your seventh birthday after all."

"Thanks, Merlin, truly. But you know I can't be. Not with—"

"I know, it's okay, but I just didn't like how all those people were treating you."

They are silent for a bit. The sun heats the backs of their necks, which is covered by quite long hair that Uther and Gaius beg to allow to be cut.

Merlin turns to his friend and smiles. "I got you something." He runs off to the middle of the clearing and plucks a small blue flower from a small patch of them. The flower is only about a centimeter wide, but it has a strong stem, yet flexible, so it will do well for Arthur's gift. He wraps up the stem around his finger and ties it, forming a small grass ring. He takes Arthur's hand and puts the ring on his middle finger. Both of them blush and look away, but then back at each other.

"I don't want to be the only one with a ring," Arthur says before standing up and walking over to the same flower patch. He tries to figure out what Merlin did to make his ring, but he is much less coordinated and so the ring turns out much worse. Merlin doesn't mind. He hugs the prince and whispers to him, "I love you." 

"I do too."

They hug for a really long time, but neither want to stop. They finally compromise and tumble onto their backs, holding hands while they look up at the sky and squint at the clouds, making up stories for what seemed like hours. They laugh at each other's ridiculous tales about their friends and family. Nothing was weird or abnormal because they didn't use words to describe it. To them, they were just best friends, had been for as long as they can remember. 

"My dad is going to be so mad at me when I get back," Arthur says softly.

"Gaius will be too. Wanna head back?"

"Sure! I'll race you."

"You can race me, but I will beat you!" Merlin dashes off while Arthur follows close behind, rolling his eyes at the stupid sentence his friend just said.

The boys arrive through the secret entrance they left through. The sun is setting but it is still quite bright out. They wave goodbye to each other, the twilight sky lighting up their faces. They turn and go their separate ways. Both spin the grass ring around their finger while thinking of the other.

 

******

 

The seasons changed, years went on, but the two children never grow apart. They often returned to that grass clearing in secret, using excuses such as horseback training or gathering herbs. Neither Uther nor Gaius were told of their friendship. None of the knights or peasants knew anything about them. Anytime Merlin brought up telling someone, it was always, "Just wait until I'm king. Things will be different then." This was good enough for both of them.

Merlin learned to read English at around the age of thirteen, but only now, two years later, can he read Old English, the language of the spells, which is surprisingly different from the English everyone spoke. He still doesn't have enough strength to do much more than move small things and light a fire, if he's under stress, but it has been enough to keep Arthur out of trouble. When he asks Gaius when he will be able to tell other's of his gift, the answer is always, "Wait until Prince Arthur is king. He will change the laws and then things will be different."

Arthur turned seventeen a few months ago, and ever since then his father has been much more strict on what he needs to do to help Camelot. He had always thought that once he took over as king, he could do what he thought was best, but Uther believes that his son must rule the same way as he has in order to preserve the kingdom. Arthur thinks about this a lot, and he thinks the main difference between how they rule is preservation versus improvement.

Both boys have a lot of responsibility that they have to attend to. Arthur has to train with the knights and learn of the complex web of politics, which he struggles to survive through. Merlin has constant errands for herbs and delivering medicine. Occasionally, they will both get a day off where they can hang out together. Today happens to be one of those days.

 "I've never really thought of this before, but the clearing is quite far from the castle," Merlin starts.

"So?"

"Well, there could be bandits and things out here; it's dangerous to go out here alone."

"Merlin, what do you want me to do? Should I gather the knights and have them join us? Maybe invite my father with us for a game of chess as well?" 

Merlin raises his hands in surrender, "Alright, fine, I just don't want to be killed because your father can't allow relations between royalty and peasants." They joke about it, but neither are exaggerating one bit when they say Merlin would be arrested and killed for "corrupting the noble sanctity" as Uther puts it. "We have been coming here since we were children. You could've been killed." 

"I appreciate the concern, Merlin, but I think we are fine. There are no enemies of Camelot this close to the castle. Trust me, I would know."

"Whatever you say, Your Highness," he says sarcastically.

They arrive at the clearing with the sun sitting in the middle of the sky. It is quite low in the sky as it is nearing winter. Although Camelot's winters are mild compared to other kingdoms, it still gets quite cold. A mildly cold day for Arthur is fine, but Gaius doesn't make much money and Merlin can't afford a coat.

"Here?" Merlin says, already having plopped the blanket and snacks on the ground. Arthur nods.

Always the romantic, Arthur plans for a day together and has Merlin carry their stuff. He doesn't mind, really, just wishes Arthur would actually make an effort to try and help. 

They sit down and start eating. Merlin, of course, snatches the bread and practically chokes trying to eat it. The prince is too sophisticated, and takes small, polite bites of bread.

"Haven't you any manners? You have crumbs all over your shirt." Merlin looks down and swipes the crumbs off with one hand, still eating bread with the other. 

"Sorry," He says, voice muffled by food. 

They laugh, and Arthur grabs his companions hand awkwardly, setting them off again. He finally calms down to realize how cold the younger boy's hand is.

"Merlin, you are freezing!" 

"No, it's just my hands. They're always cold."

"That's ridiculous. I'm going to get you a jacket as soon as we get back to Camelot. For now, just take mine," He states, already removing his jacket. 

"No, Arthur, I'm fine, really," he stutters, "We don't get back until late, and you need your jacket. We can't afford you getting a cold."

"And I can't afford you having one. Just take it, princes orders." He jabs his arm out, holding the fur-lined coat.

"More like princesses orders." Merlin mutters, blushing as he puts on the coat.

Arthur ignores the comment. "Better?"

"Almost." He sits up on his knees and kisses Arthur, smiling into it just a bit. Arthur leans forward, refusing to be caught off guard by even something as sweet as this.

"Much better." He smiles and laughs, holding the back of the prince's head and pressing their foreheads together, looking at each other. Arthur admires the way his eyes scrunch up as he smiles. Arthur reconnects them and they hold each other, keeping just a bit warmer in the unforgiving cold.

 

******

 

The cold winter turns to a vivacious spring. The city that had slowed along with the world around them springs back into life. People start coming in and out of Camelot daily, visiting family or floaters heading for the next kingdom they see. The streets bustle with merchants rolling carts of goods and children running about, chasing each other through the city.

Spring is a very busy time of the year for both boys. Arthur has more training now that the weather is warmer, as well as visitors from neighboring kingdoms to attend to. Merlin has to restock the depleted storage of herbs and keep up with the many cases of illness from all of the village people entering the city. 

"Come on, Arthur, this might be the last time in months we will be able to see each other," Merlin whines.

"I've already told you, I am busy." He spits out the last word and continues walking up the stairs in a hurry to get ready for training.

"Doing what?" Merlin raises an eyebrow skeptically.

"I have training, obviously."

"Oh, I should've known, as my entire life revolves around your schedule, I should've known that our noble and true Princess Arthur has training today."

"Shut _up_ , you're talking too loud."

"Arthur, seriously, can't you think of anything," He bites his lip and looks down, "better we can do."

"Merlin, could you _please_ , we are in public."

"So what? Most of the servants probably know we are together." Now Arthur is the skeptic, looking down at Merlin with disbelief, "Servants know everything," he defends.

"How about we spend some _time_ together for a few minutes, and then you can go to your training or whatever."

" _Fine_ , but if I am late, you are going to pay for it."

"I like the sound of that." Arthur hits Merlin in the back of the head. They practically skip off to Arthur's chambers, trying not to draw to much attention to themselves (which was almost impossible as Merlin kept snickering at the blonde's caution.)

 

******

 

"He should be here by now," Leon says.

"Relax, mate, he probably just forgot, he'll be here in a minute," Another knight assures.

"It's unlike him to be late for training. In fact, I don't think he's ever been late."

"So? The later he is, the less work we have to do."

"Yeah, I suppose that's true." Leon considers for a moment. "I'm going to go look for him."

Leon jogs off to the front of the castle and up the steps, skipping every other stair. He heads to Arthur's room first, assuming he would be sleeping. Turning the corner while nearly running into a maid, he approaches the prince's room. He raises his hand up in a fist and knocks on the door.

"Oh, shit, um, I'm busy right now, can it wait a few minutes?" Arthur shouts.

"A few minutes?" Another voice he didn't recognize mumbles, quite loudly.

"Shut it, Merlin." Merlin? The physician's assistant? What was he doing with the prince? 

"Um, of course, Sire. Can I ask with what?" Leon asks, a bit curious as to what could possibly make Arthur late to training.

"Um, fuck stop that, I am—"

"Getting dressed." Merlin suggests, again louder than intended.

"Getting dressed!" He shouts back. "It will only be a moment."

"Ok, no rush!" Leon says, suppressing a laugh and hurrying back to the arena.

He turns the corner when he hears the prince speak quite loudly, "You are so dead. We are lucky that was Leon, or else we could've been in big trouble."

 

 ******

 

"Come on, Merlin, I just got out of training and I am not wasting today."

"I have a life too, you know."

"Really? I had no idea," he says sarcastically.

"Shut up. But seriously, I have to run some errands for Gaius."

"Well I can help you with them," he offers.

"Fine." Merlin hands a list of flowers and a picture of each that Arthur vaguely recognizes. "We have to get these from the forest."

"Sure, ok." He nods. "Let's get going, we haven't got all day."

They leave the castle and walk off into the forest, leaving some space between them as to not arouse suspicion. Arthur tries to help, but it is very clear that he is way out of his comfort zone. With every flower he picks, he is told that it is the wrong type. Merlin will say it has too many petals, of not enough leaves, or the smell of it doesn't match. 

"It is very important to get the right kind, Arthur. If you pick the wrong one—"

"You could make a poison instead of a antidote. I know, I know, it's just all of these flowers look the same. That one's blue. That one has spiky leaves. That one is short. That one is dead."

"It's not dead, it is just dormant. It will return in the fall. You can tell because the—"

"Exactly! How on Earth can you tell?"

"Well, it just takes—"

"Rhetorical question, Merlin."

"Oh." He passes for a moment. "Want to take a break?" 

"I guess." He pouts and sits against a tree.

"Um, you shouldn't sit there."

"And why is that?"

"Those leaves are poisonous. They cause itching and a rash when touched."

Arthur leaps to his feet. " _Mer_ lin!" He shouts. Merlins almost dies of laughter. "This is an awful date."

"Date? You invited yourself to run errands with me. This isn't a date."

Arthur puts his hand over his heart and makes a sarcastic face of offense. "Why on Earth not? I'm here. You're here. We're here together—"

"Well observed." Merlin says.

"Shut it. But it's basically a date."

"Whatever you say, sire," he says sarcastically.

"Ex _cuse_ me?" He says, again with sarcastic offense. "That is no way to talk to royalty."

Merlin laughs and disregards his comment, picking more herbs and flowers while Arthur pouts on another patch of itching leaves. He "forgets" to tell him that he shouldn't sit there, and looks forward to Arthur's complaints later on.

 

******

 

 _Knock knock knock_.

"Enter," Arthur responds. A nameless knight enters.

"The king requires your presence at once in the throne room, sire," He says in a monotone voice.

"Did he say why?"

"No, but it sounds urgent." Urgent means his father is angry.

"Tell him I'll be there in a moment."

The knight turns on his heel and speeds out of Arthur's room. 

There is _no_ reason for his father to be upset with him. He has been on time to every stupid thing he has to attend. He has worked even harder these past few months to get in shape. Summer usually meant trouble, and although on peaceful terms, showing any sign of weakness results in attacks. Always, either from another kingdom or sorcery. 

Uther with surprises is Arthur's least favorite combination, but it seems he has no choice. He walks down the hallway with a courageous facade.

He opens the door slowly and steps into the throne room to find his father standing in the middle of the room. He is facing the opposite direction with his hand on his chin, looking down in disgust and spite of his son. 

Arthur knows he fucked up, bad from the looks of things. He approaches the situation with as much princely charisma as he can muster. "Hello, father. Is there a problem?"

Pause. "Who is Merlin?"

Arthur's stomach drops. He has had nightmares about this very moment. He pinches his arm to no avail. 

Uther is either testing to see if Arthur will lie and already knows of their relationship, or he genuinely doesn't know and trusts his son to give him the facts. Arthur assumes the middle is true, where his father only knows some of the story but not all of it. "He's a friend, just someone to keep me down to Earth."

"Oh, is that so? And this 'friend' makes you skip training or arrive late on a weekly, almost daily basis?" Arthur doesn't say anything, "I want him gone," he says calmly.

"On what charges? He hasn't done anything wrong!" Arthur says in a panicked rage.

"Homosexuality is a crime, you know that!"

"Then you'll have to spurn me as well! I am just as much a part of it as he is."

"You're being foolish, Arthur. You are too young to have feelings for anyone, much less a boy."

"But he can be charged with a _crime_? He's three years younger than me!"

"You both knew the risks and consequences of your actions, I'm sure."

"Please, just, don't send him out there alone, father. There are bandits and hunters and, and all sorts of things. He will be killed or enslaved, and he doesn't deserve that."

"You leave me no choice. Your actions, your decisions will determine the fate of the whole kingdom someday. You have to learn your lesson, and I will not be succeeded by a fag!" 

Arthur pauses, rendered speechless by the insult. "Give him two days," he says coldly.

"One. One day and if he is still in Camelot then I will have him privately executed. I don't suppose I have to warn you about the consequences of this getting out?"

Arthur turns and walks out of the throne room, breaking into a sprint once the door is closed. He holds up the metaphorical wall protecting him from being hurt by his father with all his strength. _Just make it to Gaius's home. Make it to Merlin._  He chants, almost a prayer.

_Knock knock knock._

Gaius opens the door, appearing very tired. "Arthur? Is everything alright, sire? You don't look well," he asks with concern.

"Yes, yes, everything is fine. May I speak to Merlin?"

Worry creeps onto the old man's face. "Of course, could I ask why?"

"I'm afraid I can't answer that, court business and all, but he's not in trouble."

"Ok, ok that's good. Sorry to keep you waiting, I will go get him."

Arthur stands at the door, peering into the house. Pain hits his chest and stomach when he sees Merlin walking out of his bedroom. Merlin crinkles his eyebrows in confusion. He walks over to the prince. "What can I do for you, sire?"

"We are going out. Right now."

"Oh, um, ok. I thought you were busy today?" He asks.

"Change of plans, come on." Arthur grabs his friend's arm firmly and drags him behind as he takes off, running through the streets of Camelot to the place they have snuck out from since they were kids.

When they arrive, Arthur looks around at the field, recalling all of the times they had come here before. "This is the last time," he whispers to himself. 

"What?" Merlin asks.

"Nothing, I didn't say anything," he says with a half-hearted smile.

"Arthur, I have known you since before I can remember, and I am not stupid, despite what you might believe. So do you want to try that again?"

"Not really," he says, but continues anyway, "You have to go. My father has banished you. He gave you one day to leave."

"W-what for?" Merlin stutters.

"For this, of course!" He points back and forth to each other, "And I don't want to talk about it. I just want to have one more day together because I don't know if- _when_ we will be able to see each other again. Maybe after my father dies. Maybe sooner, maybe later. But I don't think this is the end. That's not ignorant optimism either. I truly don't think I can just get over you and move on to marry some princess. So for the last day together, I would just like to sit here and not say anything, but just exist here, with you." Arthur takes a breath and stops.

They pause for a moment. Merlin absorbs all of what he just heard. Instead of trying to plan out where he is going to go, or how he is going to make a living, he just sits down and pats the grass next to him, and simply says, "Okay."

 

******

 

One day goes by, and Merlin is leaving the castle. Arthur has already said his goodbyes and watches him leave from the safety of his bedroom. He couldn't be crying in the middle of town, now could he? After all, enemies don't strike when you are strong, they strike when you are weak and have let your guard down. So he stands at his window and watches his best friend, oldest friend, boyfriend, and soulmate leave his kingdom. He spares himself the harsh reality that a boy like Merlin will be killed in the first month, or at the very least enslaved for the rest of his life, where he will be worked to death. Instead, he allows his optimism to make things a little better, and dreams of being able to see him again, possibly in secret after a few months when the heat has died down. Maybe once he is crowned king he can change the laws and then they can get married and rule together.

Of course, this is all just a fantasy. None of these things actually happen. Instead, the universe settles for a compromise between death and happily ever after. 


	2. Angel Wings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Merlin, of course, never completely leaves Camelot.

Merlin, of course, never completely leaves Camelot. 

Leaving Camelot would result in not only his death, but consequently Arthur's and the whole kingdom's end as well. After all, Merlin has probably saved the kingdom more times than all of its knights combined.

After he was banished, he decided to go to the druids for refuge. They were trustworthy and could teach him a lot more than Gaius ever could. Although the old man meant well, he was limited by his hardened sense of the world around him, and the caution that held the young warlock back.

Unsurprisingly, the hardest part about leaving Camelot was watching what it did to Arthur, having to stay there in secret, watching an emotionless shell from the shadows, unable to help his friend at all. 

Over the years that Merlin has been at Camelot, he has stopped countless magical beings, smuggled sorcerers from the kingdom, and healed fatal wounds and diseases with miraculous cures, all while staying hidden. But the one person he couldn't save was the one person who needed saving the most. Arthur Penedragon.

After just a few of the longest months of his life, Arthur is in danger yet again. 

A blonde witch, who the druids told him is called Morgause, challenges Arthur. He, of course, accepts, not knowing of her power, and although he is very good with a sword, Merlin doubts that he can beat someone as powerful as her.

He sees her in the arena and goes to talk to her. After all, maybe she is just as tired of his arrogant ass as everyone else is and wants to knock him down a bit.

"Morgause."

She doesn't say anything.

"No point in trying to hide your identity from someone who already knows it, witch."

"Why don't you tell me your name then?"

"Because I don't have to," He pauses. "Call me Emrys."

"Emrys?" She says, her voice raising so high it cracks.

"That's what I said." He says lazily.

"What do you want?"

"Why are you challenging Arthur?"

"Why does anyone challenge anyone?"

He pauses, thinking, "Because they want to prove themselves. But why do you need to prove yourself?"

She stands with a smug look in her face, cocking an eyebrow and crossing her arms. 

"You're going to make me figure it out. Ok. Ok, I can do that. You obviously don't want control of the kingdom, or else you would just storm the castle with an army and take it over. You don't need to prove anything to yourself, because you seem to be the second most arrogant person I know," He almost laughs but it doesn't feel funny anymore, "So you are proving your strength to someone else. But who?"

"You're smarter than you look, Emrys. Unfortunately, I can't tell you that just yet."

"That's a shame, I could've killed two birds with one stone." He says something in Old English that produces a fire in his hands. 

"Woah, woah, ok, let's talk for a minute. Jeez, I've heard stories of Emrys, and he is much more collected than you. What the hell happened?"

He doesn't answer and throws the fireball at her. She blocks it and dissappears from Camelot.

Merlin looks up into Arthur's window. The prince sees what happened but doesn't see Merlin, just that Morgause is gone. Merlin has never seen him this sad. Not on any of his birthday's or executions of innocent people did the prince look as hopeless as now. Merlin hated knowing that he could do nothing about it, and left to avoid torturing himself with the idea of going back to him and ignoring the consequences of acting so recklessly.

 

******

 

Merlin wakes up in his tent in the Druid camp to hear the men discussing amongst each other. One can sense the tension rising within the campground. The young warlock goes into investigation mode and comes out to see what is going on.

"Good morning, Merlin," One of the older Druids says.

"Hi, morning. Did something happen in Camelot?" He questions.

"Yes, nothing major—"

"Was it an attack?"

"Well, we aren't sure yet."

"How can you not be sure of an attack? It's usually pretty noticeable." He raises his voice a bit. "Damage is done, someone gets hurt, et cetera."

"Well, I'll just tell you the facts—"

"Good idea," he says sarcastically.

"Okay, so last night, inside the ward Morgana's chambers, a fire started. Her servant says the candle was blown out, but it seemed to be the cause of the fire."

"Is there anything else I should know?" 

"Well, we believe the fire was started by magic."

"Why?"

"The window was blown out into the streets. The person is probably an amateur, but they could've lit it on impulse and simultaneously—"

"Thanks." No one tries to stop him from going into Camelot. They would probably be thrown into a tree without the warlock even turning around to see who it was.

Sneaking through the castle is not unusual for Merlin; he had done it many times before. It made it easy for him to slip past the guards, knowing all of their patterns and stations. The problem is that he has no leads to go on. All he knows is that something happened and it might be magical. Not much to go on, he thinks.

He starts with Morgana's room, checking down the hall before peering into her room. Gwen is there, comforting a distressed Morgana.

"It was me Gwen, I know it was."

"That's ridiculous, now. You're not a witch, and if you were, I would surely know by now." Ouch. The words sound too familiar to Merlin.

"I didn't even know. It was an accident, I just felt so scared, and then the candle just exploded with flames up to the curtain."

"It was probably just a dream, I will ask Gaius for a potion to help you sleep well. Don't think I don't know how little you've been getting."

"You're too kind, Gwen." The servant smiles before turning to leave and Merlin whips his head around looking for a hiding spot. He resigns to slipping behind a corner and waiting for Gwen to leave.

Gwen walks down the hall and turns the corner, heading towards Gaius. Merlin sneaks into Morgana's room, damn the consequences.

He knocks on the door and enters after she invites him in. "Merlin?" Her voice raises and her eyes widen with shock.

"The one and only." He says.

"How are you? Where did you go? What are you doing here?" She bombards him with questions.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. I'm here to talk with you."

"About what?"

"The fire. I believe it was started by magic."

"Oh," She pauses. "What would _you_ do about it?"

"Please don't be so hostile, Morgana. I need you to trust me." His voice softens, "I have a theory about what happened, but I need you to fill in some blanks. Can you do that?"

"I know what happened," She blurts out.

"Oh?"

"I had a dream, like the others that I had—"

"What do you mean?"

"Don't interrupt me when I'm speaking."

"Sorry. Go on."

"I had a dream that you would come back, but you were different. It showed this conversation, right now, but also some, other things." She takes a breath and continues, "I woke up scared, of what happens later, and a huge fire came up from the candle. Merlin, I think I _made_ the fire."

"That's what I thought."

"W-what?"

"Don't worry, I'm not going to tell the king. But you should keep this a secret, for now at least."

"Merlin, I'm scared."

"I know, I know. But you'll be fine, I promise."

"No, you don't understand. Uther will have me executed for this."

"Which is why he won't find out." He takes a breath and closes his eyes. "You're not alone in this, okay?"

"Who else is like me?"

"Watch." He closes his eyes and moves the dust from the books into a horse-shape behind him. It gallops for a moment before resting in a pile on the ground. "Magic is a gift. It isn't inherently good or bad. Some people are bad, and they happen to have magic. But others use it for miracles all around the world."

Morgana stands there, mouth agape at the performance she had watched. "Merlin, that was amazing. Where did you learn to do that?"

"I can't tell you that. He wishes to remain secret. But I have know him for a while and he taught me much of what I know now." He smiles for the first time in a while.

"Fair enough. Well, I know you aren't supposed to be here, and Gaius is helping me get better sleep. I can handle myself, and you need to leave."

"Okay, if you ever need me, my camp is about a four hour ride from here. Just head east, directly towards sunrise."

"Okay, thank you so much for putting my mind at rest, Merlin. Your secret is safe with me."

"As yours is with me. I hope to see you soon."

He leaves just before Gwen comes back with the sleeping draught. He heads back to the camp as the sun sets behind him. The druids smile with the good news that Camelot is safe, once again.

 

******

 

Merlin knew it was a stupid idea.

There was no way letting a dragon free into the kingdom that imprisoned it wouldn't result in consequences.

But the dragon was persuasive, and Merlin succumbed to his whims.

And now, looking over the castle, he stared into the fires and tried to ignore the screams of the citizens and knights who now are punished for his arrogance.

Arrogance that he could keep a dragon under control.

"How do we stop the dragon?" He slams his fist on a makeshift table.

"We can't do anything. Only a dragonlord could stop it," A Druid answers.

"A what?"

"A dragonlord. A person who can command dragons to do anything. It isn't a skill, though. You can't learn it with practice. It must be passed down from father to son."

"Fine. Then let's find one."

"We can't. The last ones died in the Great Purge."

"That's ridiculous. All of them died?"

"The last one was called Balinor. He was caught outside a village, technically outside of Camelot's lands, but the king is thorough. He was executed."

"He has no children? No sons?"

"Only rumors of a son. But it would be impossible to try to find him."

"What rumors?"

"He stayed with a woman in the village that kept him hid for a while. A few months later, she was pregnant."

"Who is this woman?"

"Her name is Hunith. But these are just ru—"

"Hunith?"

"Yes, that is what I said."

"My mother's name is Hunith." Merlin's voice softens, something he has rarely done.

The druids are silent for a moment. "If the rumors are true, then you are a dragonlord."

"Great," He says with finality, "Then I will go to Camelot and defeat the dragon."

He turns away from the druids and hastily prepares. The druids don't try to stop him. They continue to talk through back up plans for leaving the area and fleeing to far away lands.

 

 ******

 

It isn't Arthur's job to speculate why a dragon has appeared out of nowhere and lays carnage upon the city. Nor is it his job to save all of his wounded citizens from the fire. His job is to stop the dragon. Unfortunately, it seems that he has taken it upon himself to fail at his job and focus on the things that aren't his responsibility at the moment.

A dragon cannot be killed with steel. It can't even be killed with magic. All he can do is make pathetic attempts on intimidating the beast and making it scared enough that it will leave.

On one attempt, he thinks he saw the dragon laughing at them. The sadistic bastard.

The scene is overwhelming to look at for the young prince. The fires are so bright, making up for the layer of smoke blocking most of the sunlight from hitting the ground. Mothers are running with their children in their arms. Many have already lost a child in the smoke and fire.

Watching the dragon, it becomes clear to Arthur that it has the power to kill everyone in minutes. Why it is dragging out the fall of Camelot, he doesn't know. But he clearly can breathe fire as easily as a man breathes air. Yet he swoops down with a burst of flames, waits a bit, and then swoops again, torturing the city until it collapses.

Hope is hard to have when your citizens and knights are being massacred, he finds.

Arthur gathers outside with some knights and some brave men who want to help in the fight. He is thankful for the bravery of the commoners and promises himself that if there is a kingdom left after all this, he will see to it that they are rewarded for their actions today.

"Do we have a plan? We're basically sitting ducks here," Elyan points out.

"How could we have a plan? It's a bloody dragon. You can't kill it. You can't reason with it. All you can do is poke it with your swords and hope it leaves you alone," Gwaine says with his accent that screams that he isn't from around Camelot.

"Does Gaius know anything on how to kill a dragon?" Leon asks Arthur.

"He was the first person I talked to. Not even a sorcerer could defeat it." The prince bows his head in embarrassment that he can't do anything for his people. "Search the town for survivors. Get them inside. We'll shut the doors and heal the wounded." He looks up at the beast, who turns and gets ready for another swoop. "We'll wait him out. He's got to get bored eventually."

The men break apart and search the burning houses for any sign of life. The dragon dives and blows a puff of fire where they were gathered, setting a wagon of supplies on fire. It flies up again and through the smoke, out of sight. Arthur doesn't find anyone and turns to head back to the castle to assist with carrying the wounded.

He turns the corner to see his father bursting out of the busy castle door. He heads towards him and see that he is hysterical with madness. "Son, please, please take care of the kingdom. Take care of it for me." His voice is shaky and hoarse.

"Father, what are you doing?"

"Just, just take care of it. Everything's going to be fine. Just stay here."

The king goes to the middle of the burning marketplace. He stands and looks up at the smoke covered sky. "Kilgharrah! Get down here!"

To Arthur's surprise, and terror, the beast complies. It lands on top of some shops that Arthur thinks sold produce and clothing. "Uther. Murderer of my people and sorcerer. What can I do for you?" The dragon booms, voice crisp. 

"You call me a murderer. You have killed countless numbers of my people. You're not powerful, or mighty. You're a hypocrite!"

"Just getting some long overdue revenge. What do you want?" It asks again.

"Spare my people. They have not hurt you. It is I that has killed the sorcerers and dragons and imprisoned you. Not them." He straightens his back and raises his chin.

"Why should I? You have killed every last dragon. Burned hundreds of sorcerers. Chained _me_ as a warning to others that Camelot is more powerful than magic. You deserve to watch all of your citizens, your knights, your son, _burn_ , and then left here for the vultures to pick at your sad, hopeless body."

Arthur stiffens at the words and almost runs out to him, but his father remains untouched. The dragon speaks again, "But I am merciful, and admittedly, my temper won't allow me to let you go when you are this close to me. So I will kill you now. And then I will kill all of your citizens. Why? Because I can. And because, quite frankly, you ticked me off, King Uther." He spits out his name and breathes a huge wave of flames that Arthur can feel from all the way where he is standing.

The loud noise of the fire and explosions don't come close to drowning out the sound of Arthur's screams. The knights, who were focused on helping the women and children, turn their heads to look at the prince. Gwaine runs over to grab him and pull him back to the castle before the gates close. The prince struggles against him, desperately wanting to run back to the safety of his father. But the loss makes him weak, and Gwaine manages to get him inside. The gates fall and Arthur turns to run up the stairs, not bothering to direct his subjects on what to do next. He goes into his room and shuts the door, staring  out his window at the huge area covered in flames that is the last place he will see his father.

He stares out at the flames, watching them dance and light the area orange for what seems like hours. He doesn't notice Morgana walk in until she stands behind him. She stares out the window as well and doesn't say anything.

"I couldn't save him," He says softly.

"There was nothing you could've done, Arthur. Even you can't defeat a dragon single-handed."

"I couldn't save my father. I couldn't save my citizens. I couldn't save Merlin. I couldn't save my kingdom. I have one job, to protect my kingdom. I swear that I will do everything I can to protect it. Yet here I am, staring out my window, hiding from the people who have lost friends and family, just like me. I am a coward." He whips around and looks at Morgana.

"You. Are not. A coward. You are many things, Arthur. Arrogant, selfish, ignorant, sure. But cowardly is the last word I, or any of your citizens, would use to describe you. You are brave. You are brave, and caring, and strong and true." She holds a stern look while her eyes fill with love for the closest thing she has to a brother. "Now go downstairs. One does not grieve in the midst of a battle. Help your citizens. All is not lost."

Arthur takes a deep breath. "Thanks, Morgana. You are wiser than people give you credit for." He stiffens his shoulders and starts to head downstairs to face his citizens.

Morgana looks out the window and sees a figure about fifty meters from the window, just past the spot where the king was killed. "Arthur, wait."

He turns around. "What now? You're inspirational speech was enough."

"Arthur, someone's still out there."

"What? Who?" He rushes over to the window a places a hand on the glass.

"I'm not sure."

The figure turns to the window where they stand. He nods his head before turning forward and shouting in some foreign language, possibly Latin. The dragon lands in front of him with a menacing look. Arthur panics, "What are you doing? Get out of there!" He shouts in vain.

"You have grown much in the past few months, young warlock. I see you have discovered your father's secret," The person is evidently a sorcerer. It crosses Arthur's mind for a moment, before resting in the back. It isn't much of a problem.

"You will leave Camelot, no, Albion, and never return. You will never hurt another being again." Merlin. To anyone else he is a stranger. Maybe a familiar voice to some. But Arthur could never forget his best friend. His love. First and last love. Merlin is his entire world. Camelot is just a part of that world. There is no Camelot without Merlin.

"You will need me again, Merlin. I am warning you. Other threats will come. You will need to seek my help."

"Camelot doesn't need you to defend it. It has me." He flicks his hand, shooing the dragon to the French or Germans or wherever it decides to make a new life for itself. 

Arthur can hear the cheers from upstairs, they are so loud. But Arthur isn't paying much attention to them. He practically jumps down the stairs and pushes past the masses of people in the castle. With one look, the gates are opened for him. He runs to Merlin, smiling from ear to ear shamelessly and with tears in his eyes. He almost tackles the boy, who melts in the prince's arms. They hug for a while, not caring of the stares or anything other than each other. "I want to kiss you so bad right now," Merlin whispers in his ear.

"I know. There's plenty of time for that later."

Merlin breaks the embrace, "Go. Your citizens need you."

"What are you going to do?"

"Help Gaius out. Duh." They laugh together and it feels like the moment in an eclipse where the moon perfectly covers the sun and all of a sudden the sun's rays seem to explode outwards and the universe is in balance and nothing else matters except this moment. Not Merlin's magic or the sorrow both felt over the past few months could make either of them upset right now. Arthur takes Merlin under his arm and they smile as they walk back. Merlin punches the air and shouts out in joy. All the knights start cheering as well.

 

******

 

"In the aftermath of this disaster, with wreckage all around us, and the smell of smoke and hot embers still around us, we must come together to rebuild the city," Arthur starts, standing in the castle with the citizens all looking up to him.

"Many of us, including myself, have lost friends, family, and neighbors. As acting king and soon to be official king, I have the power to do many things, including changing the old and outdated laws of the past."

"Yesterday, when the battle was looking grim, I saw some men, not knights, mind you, but commoners like many of you, save lives, not because of their title, but because of who they are. Before my father died, I promised that I would reward them, if our kingdom still stood."

"My first action as acting king is to knight some of the brave men who served Camelot well. In the past, knights must be of noble descent. But these young men have proven to be just as chivalrous as any of Camelot's knights."

"Would Elyan, Gwaine, and Lancelot please step forward." The three men make their way to the front and kneel on the ground in front of their king. Arthur knights the three men. "No longer should class determine your entire future. I would like to give the next generation the ability to do what they wish with their life. Anyone, be they a peasant or nobleman, should be able to become a knight." Some of the members of the crowd cry a soft 'woo' at this.

"My second action is, um, well it has nothing to do with the battle, or myself, mind you, but it is important and should be done. I am legalizing homosexuality. It is something that I have wanted to do for a while and now that I can, I will. However, I will compromise with the current laws. All practices of homosexuality are allowed, however I will not legalize official marriages. So, yeah." That didn't go as smoothly but at least it is out of the way.

"Finally, I would like to recognize possibly the bravest man out there. Looking at him, he is quite weak. He is thin and has very little muscle mass, and all in all, any one of you could probably beat him up. Or at least, you think you could. I certainly did, for most of my life. But it has come to my attention that he is very strong, and very powerful, and can single-handedly defeat a dragon without a scratch."

"Would Merlin please step forward." He walks forward and stands next to Arthur. "I am legalizing magic and putting Merlin in charge of all things related to magic. He will be my court sorcerer and train a bunch of magic knights to be able to handle attacks like these in the future. Because from what he tells me, this is not the first, nor the last time magic has attacked Camelot. Not by a long shot." Some of the crowd murmurs at this, but most nod their heads approvingly.

"Going forward, I hope to create a kingdom for everyone, where anyone can be happy, regardless of class or magical ability. Please help each other in the coming months, and be patient with the clean up and rebuilding of the city. Pitch in where you can. Thank you."

The crowd bursts into chatter. Merlin smiles and nods reassuringly at him.

 

******

 

**Epilogue**

One year later

 

"Come on, Merlin, it's just this way." Arthur pulls his arm, leading a blindfolded Merlin to a surprise.

"Are we there yet? I'm tired of feeling like an idiot with this stupid blindfold." 

"Yes. You can take it off." Merlin lifts the fabric off and opens his eyes. 

They are at the clearing in the forest. The first thing he notices is that they aren't alone. Gaius, Morgana, Gwaine, Elyan, Leon, Percival, Gwen, and Lancelot are all gathered with them as well. The clearing is decorated with petals scattered about and a beautiful tree that definitely wasn't there the last time he was here in the center. All eyes are on Merlin, who looks towards Arthur for some sort of an explanation.

"We can't get formally married, and we can't be public about our relationship, but we can be unofficially wed. We have gotten mock engaged and married, so I figured that everyone who knows about us could see us get married."

"Arthur, wow, this is, this is great. I mean, I thought you were joking when you said you wanted to get married. Any other time I would laugh at how you planned our wedding behind my back, but honestly, I couldn't care less." He smiles sweetly. "So, how's this going to go? I've only attended one wedding, and it was in a barn, so I'm a bit clueless."

"Well, I figured that we could remake the wedding, but here instead of in our, ahem, _my_ , room. And with rings."

"Great! Let's do it." Merlin walks up to the base of the ornate tree, holding his lover's hand. 

Tradition is for the man to tell the story of how the couple got together, sometimes embellished for entertainment. Since neither of them could agree on which of them were more manly, or for that matter, how they actually met and got together, they decide to tell the story of the clearing together.

"I found this clearing when I was five years old. Arthur was 7. I took him here on his birthday to play games. Once we got together, we would visit often. For me, it is a place that we can go and be ourselves. We don't have to hide when we are here. There is no sneaking around or stealing glances from across the room. Just us. And today, we don't have to hide."

"That leaves the flowers for me. So, the first time I came here with Merlin, I was feeling pretty terrible. I don't really like my birthday, and at that age, I was crap at hiding it. Merlin took me here to play games, but we ended up sitting just over there." He points to the left, towards a patch of grass with the blue flowers growing next to it. "He plucked one of those flowers up and tied it to make a grass ring. I did the same. It was sort of like a union between two young friends that ad to hide their friendship from the world. I inspired our rings by those flowers, because although neither of us still own those grass rings, we still have our friendship, and that's more important than the value of any ring."

The ring is a thin gold band with a sapphire stone in the center. A ring made of something other than diamond is rare for royalty, but for their case, it is entirely appropriate. Arthur slips the ring onto Merlin's finger.

Arthur leans forward and kisses Merlin, placing a hand on his cheek. They kiss for much longer than is customary at a wedding (with much more tongue than Gaius is comfortable with) and when they finally break apart, the cheers from the knights are likely heard all the way in Camelot. Merlin and Morgana conjure fireworks high above them. Consequences can be dealt with later.

"So is the tree your doing, Morgana?" Merlin infers.

"Yeah, Arthur asked me to make one. Do you like it?"

"Like it? It's beautiful!"

Merlin walks over to Arthur, who is talking with the knights. "So tell me," Gwaine says, "How does a prince become best friends with a peasant boy. No offense, Merlin."

"None taken. And the thing is, we were so young, we don't remember."

"Speak for yourself. I know exactly what happened," Arthur retorts.

"You did _not_  save me from some pages like I'm some princess in trouble. I saved the pages from your arrogant ass."

"Please, I would not bully the pages. That would be unchivalrous of me. Plus, how would you save pages from me?"

"Um, hello, sorcerer?" He stirs the leaves behind Arthur and floats one up to hit him in the face.

"You cheated in our fight!" He says, brushing away the leaf

"Ha! So you admit there was a fight!"

Arthur rolls his eyes. "Shut up, Merlin."

"That's no way to speak to your husband!" He teases.

The group eventually head back to Camelot, talking and laughing the whole way. The newly weds walk hand in hand all the way to the gate. They don't leave each other's side until they get to their bedroom doors, which are conveniently located right next to each other. 

"Goodbye, Arthur."

"Goodbye, Merlin."

They head into their rooms, thinking of each other whilst twisting their rings about their finger, just like they did so long ago.

 

******

 

* **The End** *

 

******


End file.
